A principal goal of this research will be to develop procedures leading to the synthesis of a novel series of boron-containing compounds which are isoelectronic and isostructural with the alpha-amino acids, i.e., amine-carboxyboranes of general formula, H3N BH(R)COOH. The antiarthritic and antiinflammatory activities of these and related compounds in rodents will be screened at the School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, under the supervision of Dr. Iris H. Hall. The structures of these new compounds will be established by use of routine spectroscopic methods. Single-crystal x-ray analysis of selected examples will be performed to provide details of molecular geometries and, in particular, to establish configurations at chiral centers. From the results of these investigations we will thus gain unequivocal assignment of molecular constitution, stereochemistry, and preferred conformation. With this information available it will then be possible to compare and contrast the geometries of this new class of compound with those of the corresponding amino acids and related compounds for structure-activity correlations.